PODCAST · business
Battling with Business
by Battling With Business
In this podcast, Gareth Tennant, a former Royal Marines Officer, and Chris Kitchener, a veteran of the software development world, explore ideas and concepts around teams and teamwork, leaders and leadership, and all things in between. It’s a discussion between a former military commander and a business manager, comparing and contrasting their experiences as they attempt to work out what makes teams, leaders, and businesses tick.
Episodes
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Episode 175 - Re-Release Of Building Effective Teams - Forming, Storming, Norming and Performing
In this week’s episode we revisit one of our most popular discussions from August 2024 and explore Bruce Tuckman’s model of team development: forming, storming, norming, performing and adjourning. We discuss why high performing teams do not appear by accident and how the journey from uncertainty…
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Episode 174 - Influencer #30 - Xi Xingping Part 2 : Power, Strategy and the Cost of Control
In this week’s episode we conclude our two part exploration of Xi Jinping and examine what he has done with power once he reached the top of the Chinese Communist Party. We explore the enormous scale of the Belt and Road Initiative and ask whether it is a masterclass in long term strategic...
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Episode 173 - Influencer #30 - Xi Jinping Part 1 - Power, Strategy and the Making of Modern China
In this week’s episode we start a new Influencers series by turning our attention to one of the most important and least understood leaders in the world, politician Xi Jinping, General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party. We explore how China’s rise from relative isolation to global…
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Episode 172 - Potholes, Politics and Broken Businesses : The Beginners Guide To Systems Thinking
In this week's episode we dive into systems thinking and why so many of the problems we complain about in business, government and everyday life are far more connected than they first appear. We explore why seemingly simple frustrations like potholes, missed deadlines or poor customer service are...
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Episode 171 - The Leadership Revolution and the Death of Empathy
In this week's episode we take on a question that feels increasingly uncomfortable in today's climate. Have we been getting it wrong when we've talked about what makes great leaders and leadership? If you watch the news you might be forgiven for thinking that empathy and psychological safety are...
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Episode 170 - When Your Boss Is the Problem : Navigating Bad Leadership Without Breaking Your Career
In this week’s episode we take on one of the most uncomfortable realities in leadership and management: what do you do when the problem is your boss? We move beyond the easy label of a “bad boss” and unpack what that actually means in practice, from incompetence and misaligned incentives through…
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Episode 169 - Influencer #29 - Shackleton : The Leader Who Redefined Failure
In this week’s episode we dive into one of the most extraordinary leadership stories ever told as part of our Influencers series, exploring the life and decisions of Ernest Shackleton. What starts as a failed expedition to cross Antarctica becomes something far more compelling. It becomes a...
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Episode 168 - The Second in Command : The Leader Behind the Leader Part 2
In this week’s episode we continue our exploration of the second in command and why this role is often the difference between a team that performs and one that quietly struggles. If leadership is usually framed around the person at the top, this conversation flips that idea and focuses on the...
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Episode 167 - The Second in Command : The Leader Behind the Leader Part 1
In this week’s episode we tackle one of the most critical and least discussed roles in leadership and management: the second in command. It is the role that frequently and quietly determines whether strategy actually turns into results, and yet almost nobody talks about it. This is the first of…
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Episode 166 - Tactics Are Not Strategy : Lessons from Iran
In this week's episode we get into a question that sits at the heart of leadership but is often misunderstood in practice. Are we actually being strategic, or are we just very busy executing tactics and convincing ourselves that progress equals success? Using the unfolding situation in the Middle...
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Episode 165 - When Ordinary People Do Extraordinary Things - With Felicty Ashley Atlantic Rower, Cancer Survivor and Everest Marathon Runner
In this week’s episode we explore what really drives resilience, leadership, and high performance when everything is on the line. What happens when ordinary people, just like you or me, are placed in extraordinary circumstances and there is no escape from the team, the pressure, or the goal? We…
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Episode 164 - Influencers #28 - Malcom McClean and The Box That Built the World
In this week’s episode we explore a deceptively simple idea that reshaped the modern world. We tell the story of Malcom McLean and the rise of the shipping container, not as a tale of invention, but as a masterclass in leadership, systems thinking, and the real impact of change. We start by...
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Episode 163 - The UK Government's Top Secret War Book : The Idiot's Guide For What To Do In Case Of Apocalypse - Part 2
In this week’s episode we continue our two part series exploring one of the most unusual leadership problems imaginable. How do you prepare an organisation or even an entire country for something that everyone hopes will never actually happen. In the previous episode we introduced the idea of the...
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Episode 162 - The UK Government's Top Secret War Book : The Idiot's Guide For What To Do In Case Of Apocalypse - Part 1
In this week’s episode we start the first of a two part series looking at how people plan for events that they hope will never actually happen. The story begins with a visit to the National Archives at Kew where Chris spent time reading declassified documents about real British wartime planning...
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Episode 161 - Pressure Is the Point : What UK Special Forces Can Teach Leaders About Performance with Simon Jeffries
In this week’s episode we explore a simple but uncomfortable truth about leadership: pressure is the point. It is not something to be avoided, minimised or delegated away. It is the arena in which performance is revealed. We sat down with Simon Jeffries, a former Special Boat Service operator...
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Episode 160 - BHAGs and 3HAGs Re-Release : Turning Vision into Action
In this week’s episode, re-released from the heady early days of the podcast in 2023, we tackle a question that sits at the heart of leadership and management: how do you move from a bold vision to meaningful action? It is easy to talk about strategy. It is much harder to create a clear…
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Episode 159 - Influencers #15 Re-Release - Niccolò Machiavelli - Power and Principle in an Age of Strongmen
This week we revisit, as a re-released episode, one of the most controversial figures in political and leadership thinking as part of our Influencers series. We ask a simple but uncomfortable question. Do good leaders sometimes have to do bad things? It seems particularly relevant given the world...
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Episode 158 - Leadership and Management in an AI Powered World - Part 3
In this week’s episode we conclude our three part series on AI by tackling one of the most uncomfortable and important questions of all: surveillance, control and the future of decision making. If AI can see more than we can, interpret more than we can and act faster than we can, what does that...
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Episode 157 - Leadership and Management in an AI Powered World - Part 2
In this week’s episode we continue our exploration of what it really means to lead and manage in a world increasingly shaped by AI. Rather than asking whether AI is good or bad, we focus on a harder and more important question: how leadership, culture, trust and experience change when intelligent...
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Episode 156 - Leadership and Management in an AI Powered World - Part 1
In this week's episode we start a new mini series by asking a question that sits underneath all the noise about artificial intelligence and jobs. What does leadership and management actually mean when AI becomes a permanent participant in how organisations think, decide, and act? Rather than...
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Episode 155 - Influencers #27 - Elizabeth Holmes - How Selling the Dream Became Selling Bullshit
In this week’s episode we look at one of the most uncomfortable leadership stories of the modern business era. Elizabeth Holmes and Theranos force us to confront how easily confidence, narrative, and status can be mistaken for competence and truth. We explore how a young, driven, and highly...
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Episode 154 - A Semi Emergency Podcast on Venezuela, Leadership, Culture and the Future of NATO!
In this week’s semi-emergency episode we discuss the recent events in Venezuela attempting to look beyond the obvious political and moral dimensions, and instead look to see what we can learn from a leadership, management and culture perspective. Of course, knowing Gareth and Chris it also leads…
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Episode 153 - Royal Marine, Yeoman Warder and Arctic Explorer : Baz Gray The Most Interesting Man In The World - Part 2
Leadership under extreme pressure is rarely about heroic speeches or rank. It is about judgement, trust, and knowing when to lead and when to follow. In the second part of our conversation with Baz Gray former Royal Marine, polar explorer, leadership coach and now Yeoman Warder of the Tower of...
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Episode 152 - Royal Marine, Yeoman Warder and Arctic Explorer : Baz Gray The Most Interesting Man In The World - Part 1
In this episode of Battling with Business, Gareth Tennant and Chris Kitchener record from one of the most iconic leadership environments in the UK, the Tower of London, joined by Baz Gray, former Royal Marine, Arctic explorer, and Yeoman Warder. Drawing on a career that spans reconnaissance...
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Episode 151 - Influencer #7 Re-Release - Charles De Gaulle Loyal Only to France - Part 2
Battling with Business returns with Part Two of its Influencers series on Charles de Gaulle, moving from wartime exile to political dominance and lasting national legacy. In this episode, Gareth Tennant and Chris Kitchener examine how leadership is forged not just through bravery or competence…
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Episode 150 - Influencer #7 Re-Release - Charles De Gaulle: Loyal Only to France - Part 1
In this Part 1 of 2, re-release of an earlier Influencers series of Battling with Business, Gareth Tennant and Chris Kitchener explore the leadership and influence of Charles de Gaulle, a figure often overlooked in British narratives of the Second World War. Through the lens of military history…
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Episode 149 - War in the Smartphone Age : Why Leaders Must Rethink Everything They Think They Know
This episode explores how leaders can navigate unprecedented change by understanding the hidden forces reshaping conflict, technology, and decision making. In this conversation with Dr Matthew Ford, we unpack how the smartphone has quietly transformed modern warfare and why leaders in every…
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Episode 148 - Iterate or Lose : Innovation Lessons from NATO’s Front Line
This episode of Battling with Business dives deep into modern leadership and management through the lens of defence innovation. Gareth Tennant and Chris Kitchener are joined by John Ridge, Chief Adoption Officer at the NATO Innovation Fund, to explore how technology, agility and organisational...
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Episode 147 - Inside The War Game : Red Teaming A Crisis
In this episode Battling with Business explores leadership and decision making under pressure through a deep dive into “The War Game,” a five‑part immersive geopolitical simulation from Sky. https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-wargame/id1547225334 Gareth and Chris unpack how realistic war...
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Episode 146 - Influencer #26 - The Nelson Touch : Leadership, Myth, and Mastery
"Thank God I have done my duty." This episode explores leadership through the life and legacy of Admiral Horatio Nelson. Gareth and Chris unpack the myth, the reality, and the enduring lessons behind one of Britain’s most iconic naval commanders. What makes someone a great leader when history...
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Episode 145 - Re-Release of Episode 126, Leading with Pride – LGBT+ Inclusion in the Armed Forces with Commander Roly Woods RN
In this the week of remembrance in the UK, we commemorate those who have served and died in conflicts. In a worthy re-release of a previous episode we sat down with Commander Roly Woods, a retired Royal Navy officer with over 46 years of service, to explore the personal and institutional journey…
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Episode 144 - The Leader’s Equation : Data vs Intuition
Leadership is not just about having data. It’s about knowing when the data matters, and how to apply your experience. In a world obsessed with dashboards and algorithms, are you still cultivating your leader’s instinct? In this episode of Battling with Business, Gareth and Chris dive into one of...
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Episode 143 - Shifting Ground: Finding Purpose and Leadership in Times of Change
Change is inevitable, but how leaders handle transitions, both their own and their team’s, defines long-term success. In this reflective episode, Chris and Gareth explore the many faces of transition: from promotions and career shifts to redundancy, retirement, and identity change. Drawing on...
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Episode 142 - Rerelease of Episode 8 - Adaptive teams and Pirates
In this high-stakes episode, a release of one of our very first episodes, Gareth Tennant shares a gripping real-world account of how a small, well-trained team of Royal Marine Commandos outsmarted a group of Somali pirates, and what it reveals about building truly adaptive teams. Discover how…
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Episode 141 - Influencers #25 - Richard Branson - The Cult of Cool and How He Made Business Fun
In this episode of Battling with Business, hosts Gareth Tennant and Chris Kitchener explore the life and leadership lessons of Sir Richard Branson the entrepreneur, adventurer, and founder of the Virgin Group. Branson’s story is one of audacious vision, relentless optimism, and authentic…
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Episode 140 - Red Teaming : Stress Testing Leadership and Strategy
In this episode of Battling with Business, Gareth Tennant and Chris Kitchener take on the challenge of Red Teaming, a structured way to challenge assumptions, stress test plans, and think like competitors or critics. They put the concept into practice by running a live exercise on air. Listeners...
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Episode 139 - The Military Planning Combat Estimate - 7 questions that will change your business - Part 2
Gareth Tennant and Chris Kitchener reveal the second half of the UK military’s seven-step planning model, and show how every business can boost resilience and performance with clear, communal frameworks. This episode focuses on turning strategy into execution: allocating resources, orchestrating...
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Episode 138 - The Military Planning Combat Estimate - 7 questions that will change your business - Part 1
Unlock the secrets of robust planning and flexible leadership by learning from both the battlefield and the boardroom. In the first episode of our exploration of the British military’s Combat Estimate, Gareth and Chris kick off a two-part deep dive into the UK military's renowned 'Seven…
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Episode 137 - Influencers #24 - Dwight D. Eisenhower
Episode Summary: Dwight D. Eisenhower – Leadership Lessons for Business and Beyond In this Influencers episode of Battling with Business, Chris and Gareth explore the leadership legacy of Dwight D. Eisenhower — Supreme Allied Commander during World War II and later the 34th President of the…
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Episode 136 - Rerelease of episode 6 - What are Command, Leadership & Management?
Rerelease: Command, Leadership & Management We’re taking a step back into the archive to revisit one of our most listened-to episodes of Battling with Business: our deep dive into command, leadership, and management. In this conversation, Chris and Gareth unpack the often-confused but vitally...
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Episode 135 - The Philosophy of Leadership with Professor Damian O'Doherty: Lounges, Bureaucracy, and the Myth of the Hero
In this special episode of Battling with Business, Gareth and Chris are joined by Professor Damian O’Doherty, an academic at the University of Liverpool whose work explores leadership, organisational culture, and critical management studies. Together, they dive into the philosophy of leadership…
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Episode 134 - Rerelease of Episode 7 - What is Strategy?
In this rereleased episode of Battling with Business, Chris and Gareth unpack one of the most important questions in business and leadership: what is strategy, really? While many people mistake strategy for a plan, true strategy is something deeper. Strategy is the process of making decisions and...
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Episode 133 - Influencers #23 - Mary Parker Follett : The Forgotten Founder of Modern Leadership:
In this Influencers episode, Gareth and Chris shine a light on one of the most overlooked pioneers of leadership and management thinking: Mary Parker Follett. A radical voice from the early 20th century, Follett challenged the rigid, hierarchical models of her time and instead promoted...
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Episode 130 - The power and value of board games with Lt Col Mike Harvey
In this episode of Battling with Business, Gareth Tennant and Chris Kitchener are joined by Lieutenant Colonel Michael Harvey to explore how games—from ancient board games to modern war gaming and gamified business practices—can teach powerful lessons about leadership, decision-making, strategy,...
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Episode 132 - Rerelease of episode 2 - Mission, Purpose, Vision & Goals
In this rereleased episode of Battling with Business, hosts Chris and Gareth explore one of the most misunderstood areas of organisational strategy: the difference between mission, purpose, vision, and goals — and how they work together to drive business success. What you’ll learn in this…
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Episode 131 - Inside High Performing Teams - Lisa Lloyd on the Psychology of Great Leadership
In this episode of Battling with Business, Gareth and Chris welcome psychologist and workplace culture expert Lisa Lloyd. Together, they dive deep into the emotional and psychological dynamics that underpin effective leadership and high-performing teams. Lisa brings insights from her work in...
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Episode 129 - Influencers #23 - Arthur Tedder – The Quiet Architect of Victory
In this episode of Battling with Business, Gareth and Chris delve into the life and leadership of Arthur Tedder, Marshal of the Royal Air Force and one of the most underrated military figures of WWII. Far from the front-page headlines, Tedder played a crucial strategic role as Eisenhower’s…
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Episode 128 - Developing Leaders in the Royal Air Force with the Tedder Leadership Academy - Part 2
In the Second of two episodes of Battling with Business, Chris and Gareth visit the Royal Air Force Tedder Leadership Academy to explore the core themes of leadership, management, and command with: Group Captain Emma Keith and Warrant Officer Mark Willis. Together, they delve into: The distinct…
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Episode 127 - Developing Leaders in the Royal Air Force with the Tedder Leadership Academy - Part 1
In the first of two episodes of Battling with Business, Chris and Gareth visit the Royal Air Force Tedder Leadership Academy to explore the core themes of leadership, management, and command with: Group Captain Emma Keith and Warrant Officer Mark Willis. Together, they delve into: The distinct…
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Episode 126 - Leading with Pride – LGBT+ Inclusion in the Armed Forces with Commander Roly Woods
In this powerful episode of Battling with Business, we sit down with Commander Roly Woods, a retired Royal Navy officer with over 46 years of service, to explore the personal and institutional journey of LGBTQ+ inclusion in the British Armed Forces. Now the LGBT Armed Forces Community Memorial...
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ABOUT THIS SHOW
In this podcast, Gareth Tennant, a former Royal Marines Officer, and Chris Kitchener, a veteran of the software development world, explore ideas and concepts around teams and teamwork, leaders and leadership, and all things in between. It’s a discussion between a former military commander and a business manager, comparing and contrasting their experiences as they attempt to work out what makes teams, leaders, and businesses tick.
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Frequently Asked Questions
How many episodes does Battling with Business have?
Battling with Business currently has 164 episodes available on PodParley. New episodes are automatically indexed when they're published to the podcast feed.
What is Battling with Business about?
In this podcast, Gareth Tennant, a former Royal Marines Officer, and Chris Kitchener, a veteran of the software development world, explore ideas and concepts around teams and teamwork, leaders and leadership, and all things in between. It’s a discussion between a former military commander and a...
How often does Battling with Business release new episodes?
Battling with Business publishes regularly with 164 episodes available. Check the episode list for the typical release schedule.
Where can I listen to Battling with Business?
You can listen to Battling with Business on PodParley by clicking any episode. We provide an embedded audio player for direct listening, and you can also subscribe via your preferred podcast app using the RSS feed.
Who hosts Battling with Business?
Battling with Business is created and hosted by Battling With Business.
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